What barcode format should I use?

Use EAN-13 or UPC-A for products sold at retail (EAN-13 worldwide, UPC-A in the US and Canada). Use Code 128 for shipping, logistics, and any label that needs letters plus digits. Use Code 39 for internal inventory or industrial tags where a simple, robust alphanumeric code is enough.

What is a barcode check digit?

A check digit is an extra number at the end of EAN-13 and UPC-A codes, calculated from the other digits with a modulo-10 formula. Scanners recompute it to catch misreads and typos. This tool adds the correct check digit if you leave it off, and verifies it if you include the full code.

Why does it download an SVG instead of a PNG?

SVG is a vector format, so the barcode stays perfectly sharp at any size and prints crisply on any iPhone-compatible device — critical for reliable scanning. A raster PNG blurs its bar edges when scaled up, which can make the code fail to scan. You can open the SVG in any design tool or convert it to PNG later if needed.

Does the Barcode Generator work offline on iPhone?

Yes. Once Safari has loaded the page, generation runs entirely in local JavaScript, so you can use it in airplane mode or on warehouse Wi-Fi that blocks third-party domains. Adding it to the Home Screen makes the offline workflow one tap away.

Is my data uploaded anywhere?

No. The barcode is generated entirely in your browser with JavaScript. Your product codes, SKUs, and tracking numbers never leave your iPhone, so the tool is private and works even offline once the page has loaded.

Barcode Generator on iPhone: Run It in Safari

Barcodes on iPhone can be generated for free by running the Barcode Generator in Safari, with no App Store install, no sign-up, and no upload of your product codes, SKUs, or tracking numbers. The tool works inside mobile Safari because every part of the encoding pipeline is plain JavaScript that runs locally in your browser tab, which means the value you type never leaves your iPhone. That local-only behavior matters when you are working with confidential SKUs, customer inventory, or private warehouse numbers that you do not want sitting in a third-party database. The tool covers the four standard 1D symbologies that small businesses actually print — Code 128 for shipping and logistics labels, EAN-13 for international retail products, UPC-A for US and Canadian retail, and Code 39 for inventory and industrial tags — so a single iPhone session can produce most of the linear codes your operation needs. You also get an instant SVG download that is vector-based, so the bars stay razor-sharp whether you AirPrint it on a tiny jewelry tag or a full shipping label. Everything below assumes you are holding an iPhone in Safari, not a third-party barcode app from the App Store.

How to Generate a Barcode on iPhone in Safari

The full workflow fits inside Safari. No native app is required, and no developer certificate or jailbreak is involved. Follow these steps in order:

Open Safari on your iPhone and navigate to the Barcode Generator page. Tap the share icon and choose Add to Home Screen if you want a one-tap shortcut that behaves like an app icon and can launch straight into the generator.
Tap the format selector and pick the symbology for what you are labeling. Use Code 128 for shipping labels and any code that contains letters; use EAN-13 or UPC-A for retail products; use Code 39 for simple inventory and asset tags.
Tap the value field and type the digits or text. For EAN-13, enter 12 digits and the tool appends the correct modulo-10 check digit; if you paste a full 13 digits, it verifies the check digit and flags a typo before you waste a label.
For UPC-A, the same rule applies with 11 or 12 digits. For Code 128 and Code 39, just type the raw value and the bars update on the same screen as you type, with no extra check-digit setup needed.
Watch the live preview under the input to confirm the barcode renders before you continue.
Tap Download SVG. iOS opens a share sheet where you can save to Files, iCloud Drive, Dropbox, or directly send the vector to Mail, Messages, Notes, or a label-design app installed on the same device.
Open the SVG in the Files app or your design tool, scale it to your label size, and AirPrint directly to a compatible Wi-Fi label printer or a regular inkjet without exporting to a Mac.

Because the tool is browser-based, you can also paste an existing 12- or 13-digit retail code from a product database, spreadsheet, or photo of a competitor barcode that you want to mimic, and the same workflow checks it for you before printing.

Pick the Right 1D Format for Your iPhone Project

Each of the four supported formats has a defined use case, and picking the right one on a small screen avoids a wasted print run. The table below summarizes what each symbology is for, what characters it accepts, and how the tool handles the check digit.

Format	Best For	Character Set	Check Digit Handling
Code 128	Shipping, logistics, SSCC pallet labels, mixed text	Full ASCII (letters, digits, symbols)	None required; encodes the value as typed
EAN-13	International retail products scanned at checkout	13 numeric digits	Modulo-10 added from the first 12 digits, or verified when 13 are pasted
UPC-A	Retail products in the US and Canada	12 numeric digits	Modulo-10 added from the first 11 digits, or verified when 12 are pasted
Code 39	Inventory, defense, automotive, internal asset tags	A–Z, 0–9, and a small set of symbols	None required; encodes the value as typed

If you are selling on Amazon, Shopify, or any platform that asks for a GTIN, EAN-13 is the safe default outside North America and UPC-A is the safe default inside the US and Canada. If you are printing a FedEx, UPS, or DHL label and need to embed a tracking or reference field, Code 128 is the carrier convention. If you are tagging tools or warehouse bins for internal scanning, Code 39 is the lightest option because it does not require a fixed length or a check-digit setup. When in doubt, generate both EAN and UPC versions on the same iPhone and let your buyer or platform tell you which one to keep.

The download button produces a single SVG file, not a PNG or JPEG. SVG is a vector format, which means it describes each bar with a mathematical width rather than a grid of pixels. The practical result on an iPhone is that the same SVG looks identical at the size of a price tag, the size of a shipping label, and the size of a warehouse poster, with no blurring of bar edges. Blurred edges are the most frequent cause of a generated barcode failing to scan, so staying vector from the iPhone all the way to the printed page is the safest path.

Once the SVG is on your iPhone, you have several standard options:

Tap the share sheet and choose Save to Files, then pick On My iPhone, iCloud Drive, or a third-party cloud such as Dropbox or Google Drive.
Open the file in a markup-aware app — Pages, Keynote, Numbers, Affinity Designer, Canva, Procreate, or Adobe apps all import SVG.
AirPrint directly from the Files app or Quick Look by tapping the share icon and choosing Print, then selecting a Wi-Fi label printer or any networked inkjet.
Send the SVG to a Mac over AirDrop if you need to drop it into a desktop layout before final print.

For retail label runs, save each EAN or UPC SVG into a folder named after the product, then drag the folder into Numbers or a label-template app to repeat the design at the correct pitch. For an in-depth walkthrough of how to size the label artwork so the bars stay scannable on glossy or dark stock, the step-by-step product printing guide covers quiet zones, contrast, and material choices in detail.

Privacy and Offline Behavior on iPhone

Every byte of the encoding process — including the modulo-10 check-digit calculation for EAN-13 and UPC-A — runs inside the Safari tab on your iPhone. No fetch request carries your typed value to a remote server, no analytics call ships the SKU out, and no login token ties the generation to an account. Because JavaScript and the SVG output are produced locally, the page also works in airplane mode once Safari has finished loading it. If you add the page to your Home Screen on iOS, you can launch it from the field with no signal and still produce a valid SVG. This is useful for warehouse floors with poor Wi-Fi and for anyone who would rather not paste customer SKUs into a third-party service.

Troubleshooting iPhone Barcode Issues

Most scanning problems come down to three issues that the iPhone version of the tool handles predictably. The first is wrong digit count: EAN-13 must be 12 or 13 digits and UPC-A must be 11 or 12, so check the preview before you print. The second is missing quiet zones — the empty white space that must sit on both sides of every linear barcode. The third is contrast: bars printed on a dark background, or in a light gray instead of true black, often fail to scan under retail lighting.

On an iPhone, fix those three by recounting digits before you tap Download SVG, by leaving at least the width of ten narrow bars of empty space around the printed code, and by printing bars in pure black on pure white stock whenever your label substrate allows. If a printed label still fails to scan, generate the same value again on the iPhone, AirPrint at a larger size, and re-test — scaling up almost always rescues a marginal code because scanner tolerance grows with bar height.

When the Barcode Generator Is Not the Right Tool

The Barcode Generator on iPhone only produces the four 1D symbologies listed above, and it deliberately does not generate 2D codes such as QR, Data Matrix, or PDF417. If you need a 2D code on the same device — for a payment URL, a Wi-Fi login, a vCard contact, or an inventory code that requires more data than 1D can hold — use the QR Code Generator in the same browser-only style instead. The iPhone tool also does not embed logos, change bar colors, or generate codes in bulk from a CSV pasted on the phone. Those workflows belong in a desktop label designer, and the iPhone tool is best treated as a fast, private single-code generator you keep in Safari for one-off labels and quick field checks.

For a deeper look, see Email Obfuscator on Mac: A Safari and Chrome Workflow.